For the hotel bar, the design team worked with local artisans to produce intricately carved wooden screens that acted as room dividers, with dragon-headed nagas (snakes) taken from temple architecture. Wall fabrics were chosen in rich jewel tones…

Thai motifs are found throughout the hotel. Common motifs include: the flame, the lotus, the fight between the serpent Naga and the Monkey God, the royal hunt for the mythical jeweled leopard, Thai silk, gold leaf, mirror mosaic, brass, carved wood,…

Thai motifs are found throughout the hotel. Common motifs include: the flame, the lotus, the fight between the serpent Naga and the Monkey God, the royal hunt for the mythical jeweled leopard, Thai silk, gold leaf, mirror mosaic, brass, carved wood,…

Exterior ground-level view of the Siam InterContinental Bangkok and its reflective lily pond which surrounds the front of the building. The main building and roof were controversial, reminding Prince Kukrit Pramoj of a crematorium. The hotel was in…

Exterior ground-level view of the Siam InterContinental Bangkok and its lily pond. The main building and roof were controversial, reminding Prince Kukrit Pramoj of a crematorium. The hotel was in operation from 1966-2002.

The hotel was built by architect Joseph Salerno. A pyramidal-shaped building flanked by two wings, the Siam Inter-Continental was informed by the exoticism of Bangkok’s Grand Palace complex. Salerno did not want to “copy local designs since he…